Chapter 42

 

It had been a week since Lavanya had joined the group in Ratnagiri and it was the best seven days of Khushi's life, who hadn't missed a chance to torment the couple and have fun at their expense. What was life when you did not have some keechadtaani with your best friends? Khushi wasn't someone who would let go of such glorious opportunities.

 

They still hadn't talked, face to face, because Khushi hadn't let them. HA! This was the punishment she had meted out to Lavanya for making her hold a secret for such a long time and looking at Lavanya's sour face from across the bonfire, all was worth it. Khushi was barely refraining from laughing her head off. While Chris was looking completely awkward since the time he had seen Lavanya arrive in their campsite, Lavanya was breathing fire down Khushi's back and silently cursing herself for making Khushi the mediator. Such fun...

 

Khushi still remembered Chris's expression when Lavanya had walked in with Arnav. The hot mug of coffee he was holding was draining its contents on his shirt and he was completely oblivious to all the heat and pain as he stared at his girl with his mouth open like a goldfish. When the reverie was broken by NK who screamed Di' like a school girl and ran to hug her, here Chris jumped like he received an electric shock as he registered the pain of hot coffee on his chest. All this while Arnav was smirking and Khushi, she was stuffing her knuckles in her mouth to control her laughter.

 

Lavanya was eyeing daggers at Khushi as she sat next to a totally embarrassed Chris. Even in the dinner, Khushi had monopolized sitting next to Chris so Lavanya wouldn't get a chance and this had caused a slight amount of irritation to Arnav and a whole lot to Lavanya. While Arnav was sort of okay with Khushi playing pranks on the other two, Lavanya was downright furious and NK, he was still missing the obvious fact that his sister was here to meet Chris. Well, it was NK...

 

"So, what's the plan?" Khushi asked conversationally, slyly eyeing both Chris and Lavanya. NK who was eating silently suddenly jerked up and said, "Let's play never have I ever..."

 

Khushi's smirk grew as she saw another opportunity to embarrass her best friends, only without thinking that hers and Arnav's relationship was about to get a new definition.

 

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Arnav was silently watching Khushi torment his third musketeer and chose to say nothing because he didn't want to be subjected to his girl's fury. It was best to let her be when some khuraafati idea was cooking her mind. Khushi was Khushi and she didn't take someone messing her plans very lightly.

 

It was a complete surprise for him when he received Lavanya's call at five in the morning, asking her to come and meet her at the Ratnagiri bus stand. He hadn't expected his best friend to arrive unannounced and it was the best thing he could have asked for because Lavanya's presence gave him another sort of calmness. She was his confidant.

 

But before he could confess about his knee deep crush on Khushi, she dropped the bomb of her being in love with his girl's best friend. It was a small world and both the musketeers had fallen hard for their exact counterparts. What more could have been asked for?

They had spent almost an hour talking to each other, sitting on the ledge just outside of the bus stop because Lavanya still didn't have courage to face Chris after his drunken fiasco and Arnav could only imagine how Chris must be feeling after the ordeal. After listening to Lavanya's talk, he could make out why Lavanya had packed her bags in such a hurry and came running to Ratnagiri. It was the best way. They both had to talk and sort their lives...

 

If only Khushi would let.

 

He stole a glance at Khushi who was busy running around searching for glasses as NK emptied bags of drinks and juice cartons for the game. Lavanya was staring at him helplessly, urging to do something but Arnav somehow had a feeling that this game was about to change everyone's life for good. So he let what was happening to happen... it was time to tighten his seatbelt and get ready for the ride as whatever game had Khushi at the reigns was sure going to be extremely thrilling...

 

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Tick tock... tick tock... tick tock...

 

The slow rhythm of the moving clock did little to calm her racing heat as Ariadne sat on the cold hospital seat, clutching its ends in horror as she waited for the doctor to come out of the operation theater. Nothing except slow breathing indicated that she was alive. She sat there, frozen, waiting in dead anticipation for the doctors to bring some good news about her baby. Not even a tear escaped her eyes... she was living dead.

 

Because what she had hoped would never happen had happened in front of her eyes and she was powerless to stop it. She could only stare at her little girl, as she fell on the floor, screaming as the bullet hit by her bipolar father struck her tender stomach spurting blood everywhere. Now, when her baby, Kiara, was battling with her life, her husband sat in their home, boozing.

 

Ariadne never felt so repugnant about anyone...

 

As she sat there, waiting for the light bulb to go off, indicating the end of the operation, her mind was filled with what ifs. What if she hadn't come home late? What if her husband hadn't started the argument? What if she hadn't retaliated? What if Paul hadn't found the gun? What if she had pulled her daughter out of the way? What if...

 

Just what ifs...

 

If the fight hadn't escalated, if Paul hadn't fired, if she wasn't frozen on spot, her baby wouldn't have come in the middle...

 

Only what ifs...

 

Enough was enough, she thought, as she prayed to the almighty with all her might. If Kiara was going to make it alive, she wasn't going back to Paul. If her baby would be alright, she was going to get her a new father. Someone who would love her as though she were his own...

 

NK...

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The plan was set but it wasn't in motion.

 

Shit!

 

He cursed as he hit his fist on the wall that obscured Diya from his view as she sat drinking coffee with her father. They were in a restaurant, discussing something important, something he had a nasty feeling that it was connected to him and the message he had sent Diya. If her father, the useless Shashi Gupta was involved in this then it wasn't good. It just wasn't good.

 

Shashi Gupta had the knack of being in the wrong places at the wrong time and this time too, he stood between him and his girl. Diya. He didn't know what this man's problem was. How come he sensed the danger before it arrived and got ready to fight it.

 

He didn't know...

 

And didn't want to know...

 

For an idea had come in his mind moments after he had spotted the father daughter duo in the caf. If Shashi Gupta was erased out of the equation then his problems would be finished. Smirking evilly he took out his revolver and screwed the silencer to it, aiming it perfectly to the chest of the man who dared to take his Chippu away from him...

 

Shashi Gupta.

 

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The bonfire was still hot and burning as the group gathered around to play Never Have I Ever... NK could see everyone gearing up for the game. But the only couple he had in mind was his bro and his bhabhi, Arnav and Khushi. Even though they pretended that they were still far from amicable, NK wasn't going to fall for that trap and this was the perfect way to bring out their hidden feelings. Once the drinks went inside, the feelings had no place to escape. They had to show up. Smiling to himself, he added the vodka he had picked from the booze store in Goa.

 

Goa...

 

This place was perfect, the setting was perfect and the crashing waves were perfect. Romance had to come into the open and NK wasn't really keen on messing that up.

 

"Okay," he rubbed his hands together as he handed the mock tail bowl to Khushi, "boys and girls. Here's presenting the never have I ever... my turn as I am the youngest."

 

Khushi gave him thumbs up and pulled her mock tail bowl closer, all the while smirking. NK didn't get why she was so eager to dig her own grave. But nevertheless, he started the game, "never have I ever got caught by police."

 

Khushi and Chris stared at each other before taking a sip from their drinks. They burst out laughing as they looked at others' shocked expressions, "you wouldn't get the reason..."

 

"Okay," NK muttered as he looked at Lavanya and said, "Di...you are the guest so you next."

 

Lavanya shifted uncomfortably and muttered, "never have I ever kissed someone..."

 

Arnav and Khushi looked at each other, as NK had expected, and took a sip of their drinks. Bingo... the feeling was still there. A few more sips and the secrets would tumble out.

 

After Chris and NK had sipped their drinks, NK pointed at Chris, who thought for a while and said, "never have I ever danced someone in rain..."

 

Arnav and Khushi looked at each other for an instant before taking sips of their drinks. But NK had caught the sly people. The facts were just cementing to lead to the conclusion that these two were together.

 

Chris smirked at Khushi and muttered, "Gupta...you next."

 

Khushi thought for a while and said, "Never have I ever been to a rave party..."

 

Chris chuckled as he took a sip from his drink. Lavanya too smiled while she sipped hers. NK and Arnav both burst out laughing before taking a sip from theirs. Khushi looked pointedly at Arnav who cleared his throat and muttered, "never have I ever visited a temple..."

 

There were quite a few head turns as Arnav's proclaimed atheism surprised them. Even Chris took a sip but Khushi didn't. What sort of connection did these two have? NK was astonished by the uncanny similarities these two had in terms of personality. On the surface, they were different like oil and water, but deep down they were closer to each other than anyone would have thought...

 

The rounds of never have I ever continued with proclaims becoming more notorious by the minute. The amount of vodka in their systems was enough to give them a killing hangover the next morning and a bucket full of puke. In no time, everybody was lolling around except Khushi, who being the sober one, was having the most fun. No one had an idea of how Lavanya and Chris ended up escaping somewhere or how NK ended up near the beach, burying himself in sand. No one even saw Khushi's knees buckle in sheer shock when Arnav, drunk, unknowingly held her hand and muttered, "chippy I miss you..."

 

Chippu had come to know that her Rinnie was alive...